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Retrobate Name:
morph-ball
Game Title:
R-Type
Released: 1988
Developer/Author Name: Irem
Publisher: Sega
Format Reviewed: Sega Master System
Genre: Shoot-’em-up
Game Profile:
The first thing that stands out about this game is what a lovingly crafted conversion it is. The graphics are vibrant, with chunky sprites that ooze character and detail as they zip around at a remarkable speed. Just take a moment to admire the player's craft, the R-9, and the way the force droid rotates smoothly as it idles.
The Alien-inspired bio-mechanoid creatures and caverns are present, correct, and beautifully rendered in this conversion, doing real justice to the arcade version. The boss creatures, perhaps the most iconic aspect of the game, are faithfully represented.
Unfortunately it becomes appparent early on that the sheer volume of sprites moving around are really pushing the Master System hardware to its fullest, and this results in a lot of flickering. This isn't game destroying but it'd be nice if it wasn't there. Also, in the later stages of the game as the enemy count really racks up, some serious slowdown occurs. Given the achievement of squeezing this title onto an 8-bit machine without murdering it, these flaws can easily be forgiven though.
The music deserves a mention for keeping faithful to the original tunes and maintaining the variety of texture and tone associated with it's arcade counterpart. All the while this is on top of the satisfying shooting and exploding noises.
It seems that during the conversion process, the Sega team slightly toned down the difficulty. At times it appears that the R-9's hitbox (the [part that detects collisions) has been slightly reduced in size or sensitivity, allowing the player to slightly graze enemy craft without dying, particularly at the ship's aft section. It isn't too forgiving though, and is still a good challenge.
For owners of a Master System or a Mega Drive with a converter, this game is a technical masterpiece and a must-buy. After all, the game manual says, "When flown by a hot shot pilot like you, the R-9 can cut through bug-eyed monsters like a light saber through butter." Honestly, who can turn that down?
